Quitting Smoking Can Trigger Depression

The most popular statement associated with smoking is "smoking is injurious to health", still a large part of society smoke. It is very difficult to quit smoking once you become addicted to it. People have to suffer physiologically and psychologically, when they try to quit smoking. People, who have become habitual of smoking, have to face very unpleasant reactions when they try to give up smoking. There are so many side effects of quitting smoking and depression is one of the most important among them.

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Every puff of smoke contains nicotine; it creates tranquilizing effect on brain. Once a person gets addicted to nicotine, it becomes almost impossible for him to live without it. He starts feeling very irritable and restless. Therefore, quitting smoking needs a strong determination and will power. Person trying to quit smoking can easily get depressed due to all above symptoms he can face.

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Giving up smoking is a difficult process and takes a lot of time. People who smoke a lot usually have signs of depression like restlessness, irritability, loss of appetite and insomnia. Once the depression is diagnosed, psychotherapy is the best option. If the victim is emotionally stronger, quitting smoking and overcoming depression becomes easier. But overcoming both problems need a lot of support and love from family and friends. Treatment should be carried out step by step for the emotionally weaker people.

Constant appreciation and admiration from family and friends play an important role. It gives a lot of strength to the patient.


Click Here to discover an easy and non-addictive way to cope with Depression.

Leading Causes of Anxiety and Depression in Women

The rate of depression is much higher in women than men. Today many women are facing depression but don't even realize it. They accept their mental state as being normal. Let's have a look at some of the causes of depression in women.

• Dual responsibilities:

This is the major cause of depression and anxiety in women. Today women have to do jobs to support their families but still they can't escape from the responsibilities of a mom. It's really very tough for them to make a balance between their professional lives and home lives. They don't even get a minute for themselves. With their work they have to take good care of their kids too.

• Hormone fluctuations:

Women go through the hormone fluctuations each month. They go through mood swings, anger and restlessness during this time. When they get freedom from the monthly hormone fluctuations then they have to face menopause. At this stage hormone production decreases in body and they begin to suffer depression and anxiety. As well as feeling of getting older makes a profound effect on their minds.

• Unhealthy diet:

Mostly women don't take a healthy and balanced diet. Because of this they face bone deterioration and joint pain. Their busy life style and carelessness are responsible for these changes. Sometimes even they skip their meals. In order to be energetic and active they usually take caffeine which can also lead to depression.

It's really very essential for women to take nutritious diet as well as supplements to have a healthy body and mind.

Depression Treatment Options

Prolonged feeling of sadness and dejection is known as depression. Rate of mental depression has become very higher. Most of the people generally don’t go for medical treatment. Reasons may be either fear or lack of health concern. Every disease demands medical attention, then why not the depression?

Even the most serious kind of depression is curable. There are many therapies and treatments available for the treatment of depression. Treatment options as medication, exercise, psychotherapy, acupuncture. Selection of treatment depends on the particular situation and need. The following Treatments will help you to decide which one is better for you.

Knowledge of the different treatment option is the first step of leader. You can’t have the right treatment by listening to your friend or neighbor as depression, affects everybody in a different way. Before the selection of treatment we have some tips for you to follow:

(1) Try to learn more and more about your depression. Without this you would not be able to have the right treatment. Symptoms and severity of depression play an important role in treatment. If depression is caused by any medical attention, it must be treated first.

(2) Be ready for some trials and experiments. You have to experiment different therapies and exercises to choose the best for you. So, don’t be impatient.

(3) Isolation is one of the causes of depression. Having more and more social connections helps you to come out of it. Don’t hesitate to ask for help.

(4) It’s impossible to avoid medication in the cases of severe depression. But in some cases therapies and natural treatment are as effective as medication. The best thing is that they don’t have any side effects. Sometimes a combination of therapy and medication give good results.

(5) Depression treatment is a time taking process. Sometimes therapies become very painful for patient. So, he needs to have a lot of patience.

Lifestyle changes: A way to treat depression

Sometimes irregular life style causes depression. A little change in life style can give a great relief. Medication along with life-style changes is an effective way to overcome depression. Following things can be included in daily routine-

• Good sleep- good sleep is a powerful tool in treating depression. It affects mood a lot.

• Balanced diet- Balanced diet plays an important role in the development of physical and mental health. Stress can be reduced by taking minerals and green vegetables.

• Exercise- Regular exercise provides strength to your body. Brisk walking, jogging or a little yoga can help you.

Exploring medical causes of depression

If life-style changes don’t work and you still feel depressed, then you have to consult your doctor. Your depression can be the result of any health problem. The depression won’t reduce unless the root cause is identified and treated.

Many medical problems like high or low blood-pressure, low level of thyroid hormones, heart attack etc and their medication can cause depression. Sometimes these medications cause fatigue, sadness, dejection, oversleeping etc.

Psychotherapy

Psychotherapy is the most effective depression treatment. Therapy not only helps to treat depression but also prevents it from coming back.

Many types of therapies are used to treat depression such as-

• Interpersonal therapy
• Psychodynamic
• Cognitive behavioral.

These therapies teach you practical techniques to fight with depression and help you to avoid negative thinking. Therapy can also help you to detect and understand the causes of your depression. Therapy can help you in many forms as – making new relationships, building new social connections, improving current relationship a positive way to treat life’s problems etc. All these things help you to make changes in your life.

Individual or group therapy

“Therapy” doesn’t only mean a lot of sessions with a therapist. Both these therapies are very useful in depression treatment. Both last for an hour. In individual therapy, patient makes a strong relationship only with one person and shares his confidential information with him. In this therapy patient gets individual attention.

Sometimes, group therapy can be very helpful in depression treatment. Hearing the people, going through the same problem, helps patient to overcome his problem. Patient also gets motivation tips and ideas from the other group members. Working with other group members also increases their social activities and connections.

When therapy becomes painful

Sometimes therapy becomes very painful and difficult for patient. He feels unable to continue it. Its reason can be the lack of good and strong relationship between patient and therapist. Discussing your problems very openly and honestly with your therapist may help you to move forward. However, it you still feel forced and uncomfortable don’t feel shy to go in to another direction.

Medication for depression

Sometimes medication becomes the last option, which a patient has to choose forcefully. In the cases of sever depression, medication helps to overcome some symptoms of depression. But it’s not a permanent solution. Depression is not only chemical imbalance in the brain. Antidepressant medications can’t cure the all underlying causes of depression. Antidepressants can cause so many side effects and their withdrawal is really very difficult.

All this information can help you to take the right decision. A little medication along with other methods as lifestyle changes and therapy will not only help you to have speed recovery but also prevent recurrence of depression.

If medication is really needed, consult a psychiatrist rather than your family doctor. As a psychiatrist has specialization in depression and advanced knowledge of its treatment and medication.

Other Alternative depression treatment

Vitamins and herbal remedies –

Many depressed people have experimented with supplements, vitamins and herbal remedies. These vitamins and supplements are widely available in the market. Researches are still going on how effective these remedies are. In some cases these herbal remedies can be really promising for example if your depression is caused by nutritional deficiency, vitamins and supplements may be beneficial for you. But this remedy should be taken under the supervision of a professional. As these drugs can have serious side effects on your mind and body.

Acupuncture-

According to some researches, acupuncture is an effective technique for depression treatment. In acupuncture, fine needles are used on some specific point of the body. If you want to try this technique, find a professional.

Other relaxation techniques –

Stress is the root cause of depression. Relaxation techniques like meditation, yoga, swimming, deep breathing etc. can’t remove depression but can help to reduce stress.

Causes of Depression

Depression is a persistent feeling of uselessness, as you are living without any purpose in the world. It feels like everything around you is right and you are completely wrong. Depression is like as you are all alone in this world and have nobody to care and listen.

But scientifically, according to brain imaging technology, we all have neurotransmitters in our brain. These neurotransmitters are responsible for the control of moods and our other activities and behaviors as – sleep, appetite etc. Imbalance of this brain chemistry leads to depression.

Depression can be identified with the following symptoms-

· Constant bad mood

· Everything seems wrong to you

· Disturbance in the sleep-wake cycle (insomnia, sleep full of dreams, oversleeping etc.

· Excessive crying – even on no or insignificant reasons.

· Waking up in the morning feels like a struggle.

· Feeling unable to make even simple decisions.

· You start to hate your own family and friends. They irritate you.

· You feel a partition between you and your family.

· Difficult to concentrate on anything.

· Feelings of guilt and hopelessness.

· Feelings of suffocation

· Feelings of worry and anxiousness.

· Recurring thoughts of death and suicide.

· Your senses stop working- food tastes bad, music doesn’t please you, and beautiful things don’t make you happy.

· Sexual dissatisfaction.

· Unable to carry even a normal conversation.

· Recurring thoughts of every failure or every bad experience.

· Change in appetite – overeating or loss of appetite

Along with the above reasons, here are some more reasons which can lead to depression-

Persistent memory of stressful life events –

Depression can be caused by stressful life events or accidents. A person feels unable to get rid of the memories of these events and sinks deep in the ocean of depression. It can be death of a close family member or friend, death of spouse, divorce, career problems etc.

Persistent disease or illness-

Sometimes person suffering from a chronic disease or illness such as cancer, heart problem, HIV, diabetes etc. leads to depression. It’s really very difficult to adapt the new conditions after the particular illness.

Depression is hereditary-

It’s really unbelievable but it’s true that depression runs in genes. It can run for generations.

Causes of depression in men and women-

Of course, depression affects both men and women. But rate of depression in women is much higher than men. In women the effects of hormones, menstruation, contraceptives, pregnancy, child birth and menopause are the contributing factors of depression.

Generally men suffer from hidden depression. Men are supposed to be emotionally stronger than women. So they try to hide their depression. They express their depression in alcoholism, drugs, tranquilizers or antisocial behavior.

Causes and treatment of depression are different in different people. One type of treatment is not fit for all. To choose the best treatment option, you have to identify the causes of your depression. A combination of lifestyle changes, medication, self help, and therapy may help.

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